New Delhi:
The search and seizure operations conducted by the Enforcement Directorate in Delhi and Bengaluru linked to Rajesh Exports, have revealed some significant departures from normal business practices, sources have said.
One of this was connected to the remuneration paid to senior management. The salaries were unusually low compared to the scale of the company’s operations.
Read: Probe Agency Raids Locations Linked To Rajesh Exports In Mumbai, Bengaluru: Sources
Despite the company reporting consolidated revenue of approximately Rs. 7.7 Lakh crore, the Chief Financial Officer has not received any salary since 2020. The Managing Director was paid only about Rs.17,000 a month, sources said.
Earlier this month, the Securities and Exchange Board of India or SEBI had issued a 109-page interim order against Rajesh Exports and its promoter-chairman Rajesh Mehta, alleging large-scale discrepancies in the company’s financial reporting between FY21 and FY25. The regulator claimed that nearly all of the company’s reported consolidated revenues during the period could not be adequately verified during its investigation.
Rajesh Exports Rejected Allegations
The Bengaluru-based gold refining and jewellery giant has pushed back strongly, saying the regulator’s findings are only preliminary and there has been no overstatement in its revenue records.
In a stock exchange filing on June 4, Rajesh Exports rejected allegations that it inflated revenues running into Rs 15.15 lakh crore.
Read: ‘Inflated Bills, Gold Mine’: Rajesh Exports And A Rs 15 Lakh Crore Question
The company said it is in the process of providing additional documents to the regulator and expressed confidence that the matter would eventually be resolved.
“The revenues declared by the company are correct and there is no over stating of revenues,” Rajesh Mehta had told NDTV Profit.
What Tuesday’s Raids Found
The raids were conducted at nine premises located in Bengaluru and Mumbai, sources said, in connection with alleged violations of foreign exchange regulations.
The company, sources said, failed to produce documentation on its foreign transactions, including imports, exports, overseas investments and the settlement of foreign trade receivables and payables.
Read: ‘No Revenue Inflation’: Rajesh Exports Rejects Rs 15 Lakh Crore Scam Charge
As example, sources cited that records of the investment of Rs. 1035 crore into African Mines claimed by the company were neither found nor provided by the firm.
Moreover, physical verification of stock carried out during the search revealed a difference of approximately 40 per cent between factory registers and the actual physical stock found at the premises.
In course of the search, various incriminating documents and digital evidence have been recovered, which are being examined, sources said. Further investigation is in progress.
